Jade
by Ninvampirate
Summary: Faia, Nara, Jade, and Akio, each with different personalities, origins, and favorite weapons, have worked together as mercenaries under close watch for several years. When one of them is killed during a mission, the others stop at nothing to exact revenge


Civilians duck in cover when a pump-action shotgun is fired. A little girl clings onto her mother before a body with a gargantuan hole in its torso falls in front of her. She screams as tears trail down her cheeks and her mother pulls her closer. The woman picks up her child and runs away, giving the little girl an opportunity to peek over her mother's shoulder. She sees a young peach-skinned woman with long, jet-black hair and lime-green eyes holding a weapon. She has a cheerful countenance as she cocks her shotgun and looks down at her victim.

* * *

Berenice "Bunny" de Luca

Codename: Faia

Age: 18

Birthplace: Venice, Italy

Weapon of preference: Shotguns

* * *

A group of men rushing toward Faia catches her attention, but her smile doesn't falter. She ducks before her comrade, who is behind her, surprises her enemies with a barrage of bullets. One by one, the men collapse, clinging desperately to life. Faia straightens back up and laughs satisfactorily before turning to greet her friend.

"Honestly, could you at least pretend to be serious?" the other woman sighs while brushing some of her medium-sized black hair behind her mocha-colored ear. Faia smiles innocently, causing her partner's icy-blue eyes to narrow.

* * *

Aaliyah Iman

Codename: Nara

Age: 19

Birthplace: Buraydah, Saudi Arabia

Weapon of preference: Machine guns

* * *

"Sorry…" Faia states before an explosion appears behind Nara. "Tee hee…Looks like Jade's having fun…"

A large cloud of black smoke emits from the remains of three men and a concealed land mine. A woman is giggling creepily as she shakes hidden miniature bombs out of her jacket sleeve with hopes of making something else explode. Her appearance and personality makes her stick out. A visual kei with pale skin; messy, short light-green and black-striped hair; brown eyes topped with purple eye-shadow; black lipstick; and an advanced knowledge of bombs, the young woman turns heads and frightens onlookers.

* * *

Kichōna Houseki

Codename: Jade

Age: 15

Birthplace: Tokyo, Japan

Weapon of preference: Explosives

* * *

"I love this job…" she coos while walking away. Several seconds later, she hears the bombs scattered about go off simultaneously after being stepped on. Jade turns to see what's left of a few more enemies and squeals joyfully.

"Yatta!" she exclaims. "I can't wait to tell Faia-senpai!"

"Tell her what?" her partner asks after catching up with her. "How many people did you kill?"

"Six, Aiko-senpai!"

"Oh, nice! Faia'll be so proud of how much you've grown!" he says while ruffling Jade's hair. The younger girl smiles brightly as she looks up at her black-haired, blue-eyed, dark-skinned friend. His laidback expression suddenly turns serious as he grabs Jade by the shoulder and pulls her closer to himself. Before Jade can question him, he extends the arm holding his semi-automatic pistol and fires at someone hiding behind a nearby meridian mailbox who was preparing to shoot Jade. The blow to the head knocks the man onto his back, and only his legs become visible. The flamboyantly-dressed girl exhales.

"That makes eight for me," the man boasts.

"Arigatou…" Jade murmurs. "I'm going to look for Faia-senpai! See you later!"

"Cool, I'll meet up with you guys later," he says, knowing that the girl probably isn't listening as she rushes to her mentor. He sighs before smiling.

* * *

Richard "Ricky" Hermann

Codename: Akio

Age: 22

Birthplace: Wehr, Germany

Weapon of preference: Handguns

* * *

"Is that all of 'em?" Faia asks Nara.

"It should be…I don't see anyone else."

"Maybe they ran off when they finally figured out who they were dealing with!" Faia laughs. "Let's go h-"

The sound of a gunshot is heard. It was loud, so it didn't originate from Akio's gun, which has a silencer. Faia's head snaps toward the direction of some passersby's screams.

"What the hell?" Nara says while reloading her Mini-Uzi.

"Where's Jade?" Akio runs to them.

"Wha-I thought she was with you!" Faia exclaims. She quickly slips the strap of her shotgun onto her shoulder and sprints to the commotion. She sees a crowd of civilians gazing at something on the ground.

"Move! Outta my way!" Faia roughly shoves people until she reaches the cause of their fearsome stares. She gasps.

"Jade?" Faia falls onto her knees beside the body of her friend. She holds the younger woman into her arms and shakes her.

"Wake up…Please, wake up!" she shouts desperately but Jade's eyes won't open. Blood emits through her jacket but Faia tries to ignore it.

"No…No, please… Kichōna …" she whispers while moving some of the younger girl's hair away from her face. Nara and Akio finally catch up with their speedy partner. Nara places her hand on the trembling Faia's shoulder.

"She's dead," she states bluntly.

"Yeah…Come on, let's go back," says Akio before helping Nara lift Faia back onto her feet. The black-haired girl reluctantly lets go of Jade's body and backs away. She watches as Akio picks up Jade and carries her bridal-style to Nara's car.

"Come on, Faia…" Nara pats her friend on the back. "We have to report our progress to Hayate… Oh, and don't worry; I'll drive slowly this time."

Faia doesn't pay attention as she gazes at something glistening in the distance. She sprints to the mysterious object and discovers it is a revolver emitting smoke. It has a peculiar design on the barrel: an inverse trifecta of crescent moons. Faia's expression darkens as she mentally paints the insignia in her mind.

"Faia, let's get going!" Akio calls. Faia stares intently at the weapon a few seconds longer before going back to Nara's car.

* * *

"Codename: Jade. Time of death: 4:47 pm. Cause of death: Gunshot to the waist and excessive bleeding…" Akio's voice trails off when Faia catches his eye. She is walking sullenly by the doorway of the leader's office, listening in on the conversation.

Hayate, the president of the company, is an all-around mystery. He has long, tied dark-blue hair, light skin, and strict brown eyes. His true name, age, and place of birth are unknown, and he dislikes getting his hands dirty unless it is absolutely necessary.

"Hm, I see. I'll request an immediate cremation," Hayate states. "Poor girl. She was one of our best mercenaries."

"Yes, sir," Akio nods. "I'll inform the others."

The German man bows before turning around and walking away.

"Alright…Oh, and Akio."

The man freezes and turns his head to face his boss.

"Yes?"

"Confront Faia. We cannot allow Jade's death to distract her from her job."

Akio knows that tone. There is nothing Hayate hates more than someone breaking the cardinal rules of the company, and Faia broke several.

"…Of course, sir."

With that, Akio quickly leaves the room and searches for Faia. He occasionally bumps into other workers and earns a few nasty glares. He soon exits the temporary safe haven and finds Nara washing her car for the hundredth time this week.

"Hey, Speed Demon! Have you seen Bunny?" he asks. Nara pauses when she hears her least favorite nickname before continuing wiping the hood of her vehicle with an old rag.

"I told you to stop calling me that," she says monotonously. "And no, I haven't seen her since the mission."

"Well, help me look for her!"

"I think it's best to leave her alone…She lost one of her students…"

"But if we don't cheer her up quickly, Hayate might fire her!"

"Did he say that he would?"

"Well…No, but-"

"Then don't worry about it. Just give her time to recover."

"Hm…You're just saying that 'cause you love that car more than her…" Akio states quietly enough to grab Nara's full attention. She stops again before throwing the rag into a nearby bucket of soapy water.

"Fine! I'll help you!" she growls before marching back inside the building. Akio follows her, smiling victoriously.

* * *

They search for Faia in the cafeteria. There is a food fight taking place that quickly erupts into an all-out war.

"…Bunny might be here," Nara sighs heavily, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"What makes you say that?" Akio tilts his head. The mocha-skinned woman stares at him disbelievingly before he swiftly realizes the stupidity of his question.

"…Right…She's the only one who would've started this besides Kichōna …"

As soon as he says that, Nara quickly ducks and Akio, who is behind her, receives a face full of mashed potatoes. The Arabian woman looks at him while straightening back up as he wipes the food off of his eyes and nose.

"You really need to work on your reflexes…" she suggests. "Well, I don't see her. Let's go."

They search through the recreation room. There are fairly new recruits who are practicing with shooting stimulation video games. The last time Hayate allowed students to use real guns, a few casualties ensued.

"Why're we here?" Akio asks.

"She's always willing to take these guys under her wing."

"Like Kichōna?"

"Hm," she nods. "…I don't see her."

"Hey, hey, Aaliyah! Wanna play with us?" a girl runs to them with a toy machine gun. Nara's eyes narrow.

"How many times must I tell you to use our codenames?" she says strictly.

"Oh, hee hee…Sorry, Nara…um…Wanna play?"

"Not right now. Have you seen Faia?"

"Nu-uh. We haven't seen her since you guys left."

"Dammit…Alright, we'll come back."

Finally, they check the shooting range hidden behind the safe haven. Veterans are using a wide variety of weapons equipped with silencers. Akio and Nara ask a few people shooting at targets for a moment of their time. They haven't seen Faia either. They eventually give up and regroup.

"Where the hell did she go…?" Nara mutters while placing her forefinger and thumb on her chin. Akio shrugs.

"Who knows…?"

"Hey, Akio!" a nearby mercenary waves while holding a handgun. "Wanna give it a try? I heard you got the best shot!"

The German looks at him for a moment before staring pleadingly at his partner.

"…Go ahead, but make it quick," Nara says warningly. Akio grins from ear to ear as he snatches the weapon away and aims at the paper several yards away. There is a human silhouette printed on the sheet with a target on the head and chest. Akio steadies the hand holding the gun and shoots after a few seconds. He hits the bulls-eye on the head, then chest, then head again two more times, then the chest again without stopping. His friend's jaw drops and Nara smirks.

"Show-off…" she mutters.

"Rule number Two: Don't miss," Akio states smugly before handing the gun to the dumbfounded man. The duo leaves the shooting range, unsure of where else to search.

"I told you to leave her alone…" Nara states frustratingly as they walk aimlessly throughout the building. "It's obvious that she doesn't want to be found."

"W-Well, we can't just leave her alone to sulk! You know how she overdramatizes things. She might do something drastic if we don't find her!"

"She's not stupid, Richard. Give her more credit than that."

"B-But-"

"Don't let your feelings for her cloud your judgment. It's against the company rules."

"…"

Akio stops at the doorway of the resting area.

"…Hmph…You usually defend yourself when I bring that u-"

"Sh! Look."

Akio motions his head toward something inside the room next to him. Confused, Nara follows his line of sight and sees a lump in the middle of the floor. The young woman gazes at the object more closely. She discovers that it is a sleeping bag. Jade's.

"I think we found her…"

Nara and Akio approach Faia. The girl is resting on her stomach and her face is buried into her folded arms.

"Bunny…?" Akio calls her by her as he kneels down next to her and places his hand on her shoulder.

"…sawdust…" she whispers.

"What?"

"Her sleeping bag…" Faia uncovers her face, "it smells like sawdust…" she smiles weakly. "She was always tinkering with her explosives when everyone else was asleep…"

"Yeah," Nara agrees while crouching on the opposite side.

"Haha…Remember the Duddy Buddy? Such a stupid name yet an ingenious creation."

"We remember," Akio nods. "A bomb that seems like a dud until it explodes while the enemy's guard is down seconds later…"

"Yeah…She was always such a smart girl…" Faia becomes overcome by sadness as she hides her face again. Something catches Nara's eye.

"You're wearing her ring."

"Huh?" Faia sniffles. She wipes her eyes with one hand and stares at her other hand's ring finger. There is a golden band with a dark green gem mounted on it. "Oh…yeah…I...I wanted to feel closer to her, y'know?"

"Hm…" Nara glares. "Hiding in her sleeping bag, wearing her jewelry…Hayate would be furious if he witnessed this."

"…I don't care…" the peach-colored woman averts her gaze. "I'm not going on any more missions…"

"No…Bunny, you can't be serious!" Akio's eyes widen. "B-But we promised that we'd do this together!"

"So what? I…I couldn't even help Kichōna…"

"You're just going to quit?" Nara growls. "After all that we've done to earn our current status? If you give up everything because of losing _one _comrade, you'll be forever known as a worthless coward."

"…I'll deal with it."

The Italian girl zips up the sleeping bag before giving Nara a chance to retaliate. The Arabian, knowing Faia's undying obstinacy, stands back up and takes a deep, slow breath to calm herself. Akio stands as well.

"…I'll tell him you're sick," Nara murmurs before walking away.

"Thank you, Aaliyah…"

"I'm not doing it because I want to."

Both Faia and Akio can tell that the mocha-skinned girl is lying but decide to keep quiet. Akio follows Nara out of the room.

"Oh, I hope she'll be alright…" he says unhappily.

"I'm sure she'll be fine…" Nara shrugs. "Like I said, losing a comrade is pretty common."

"Wha? B-But I'd be devastated if I lost Bunny! …I-I mean you _or_ Bunny…um…"

"Hmph…Don't let Hayate hear you talk like that…"

Akio's face turns red as he flashes a glare.

* * *

"She's sick?" Hayate cocks an eyebrow.

"Yes, sir…Since we've been moving around so much, the sudden change in atmospheric conditions affected her health," Nara fibs. Hayate stares intently at her but her poker face remains intact.

"…Alright then. I suppose you two will perform your next mission without her."

While speaking, the blue-haired boss opens the top drawer of a nearby file cabinet and takes out a sheet of paper.

"Today, you two will infiltrate the vacation home of a man named Ulrich Owen. His older brother mysteriously died after the passing of their father. His widow suspects Ulrich of killing her husband in order to gain custody of their family's fortune. She hired us to dispose of the culprit," Hayate hands Akio the address and security information of the target's house. The duo quickly skims over the document.

"Got it," Akio says. "Alright, Nara, let's get ready."

"Actually," Hayate speaks up, "I'd like to speak to Aaliyah privately."

Nara flinches when Hayate calls her by her real name, which is rare. It usually means that someone's going to be scolded.

"Okay…" the dark-skinned man nods before leaving. Nara looks at her boss confusingly.

"Yes, sir?"

"What are the rules?"

"…"

"I'd like you to recite them. You of all people should know them."

Nara does not like to be reminded of the company's regulations, and Hayate is fully aware of this. He must've caught her lie and is punishing her for it while Akio isn't around.

"…One…I am a weapon…" she quotes through gritted teeth, "Two…I never miss…Three…I leave no tracks…Four…I feel nothing…Five…I love no one…Six…Weapons do not help other weapons…"

"If you know them then why are you displaying love for your comrades?"

"Because it helps us work more effectively, sir."

"Hm…I'll let Faia take the day off, but I suggest that you get her to start working again ASAP. It would be unfortunate to lose her too."

The way Hayate talks about Kichōna's death so nonchalantly irritates Nara but she keeps quiet. She would be a hypocrite otherwise.

"…Yes, sir."


End file.
